Hockomock Swamp Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
1,079 acres1.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: T.S. Custadio ToddC4176 23:31, 14 March 2007 (UTC) · CC BY-SA 3.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in West Bridgewater
West Bridgewater has 1,953 acres of parks, 253 for every 1,000 residents
26% of West Bridgewater’s land is conserved, about 2,504 acres. 96% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 13 miles of mapped trail cross West Bridgewater, 0.9 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns · #121 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
26%
2,504 acres · of 15.3 sq mi of land
Trails
13 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,953 ac
253 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.0 mi
1.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
What kind of outdoors town is West Bridgewater?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does West Bridgewater have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, West Bridgewater is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns, #121 of 283 in Massachusetts. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, trail miles lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of West Bridgewater’s overall grade.
Conserved land26% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (13 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land253 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,953 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13AParks close to home96% of residents within a half mile of a park · MA 93% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 97%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 57%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so West Bridgewater’s 26% is ahead of 64% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 15% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Hockomock Swamp WMA, with 1.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hockomock Swamp
Managed by Town of Easton Conservation Commission
111 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
West Meadows Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
36 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 12 parks & preserves
Hockomock Swamp Wildlife Management Area1,079 acres · 1.5 mi of trail
War Memorial Park4 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsHockomock Swamp111 acres · Town of Easton Conservation Commission
West Meadows Wildlife Management Area36 acres
Rear Of Train Station20 acres
West Meadows18 acres
Adj. To Hockomock Swamp12 acres
Holmes Hill Conservation Land11 acres
Mill Pond11 acres
Woodcock Chase Land8 acres
Woodkock Chase Wldlf Area4 acres
Reynolds Landing2 acres
Who protects it
2,504 conserved acres
26% of West Bridgewater’s land. Who manages West Bridgewater’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife995 ac
Other state land333 ac
Town or city266 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)261 ac
Joint118 ac
Not recorded2,082 ac
State Conservation Area · 2,552 acAgricultural Easement · 621 acWatershed Protection Area · 206 acLocal Conservation Area · 156 acLocal Other or Unknown · 152 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 309 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 110 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hockomock Swamp Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 2,119 | Restricted |
| West Meadows Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 242 | Open |
| Town Wells Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 189 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 144 | Open |
| Hockomock Swamp State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 108 | Open |
| Town of West Bridgewater Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 100 | Open |
| Brockton Country Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 53 | Restricted |
| Pine Hill Cemetery Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 52 | Open |
| West Bridgewater State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 30 | Open |
| Rose L MacDonald Elementary School Playground Research or Educational Area | Not recorded | 22 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
2 places to go in West Bridgewater
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in West Bridgewater
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
4 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
5Baseball
4Tennis
3Soccer
2Basketball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in West Bridgewater: May to September
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 38 | 40 | 47 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 84 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 52 | 43 |
| Rain (in) | 4.2 | 3.7 | 5.2 | 4.6 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 4.9 | 4.4 | 4.9 |
July is the driest month (3.3 in) and the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 5.2 inches fall in March, the wettest month. The climate in West Bridgewater →
Next door
West Bridgewater and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Bridgewater | 26% | 0.9 | 253 | 96% | A+ |
| Bridgewater Town | 20% | 0.7 | 65 | 78% | A |
| Brockton | 9% | 0.8 | 10 | 93% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in West Bridgewater
Where can I hike in West Bridgewater?
The longest trail networks: Hockomock Swamp Wildlife Management Area, 1.5 miles; War Memorial Park, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of West Bridgewater is conserved land?
26% of its land, against a typical 21% for a Massachusetts town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on West Bridgewater’s trails?
Hockomock Swamp Wildlife Management Area and War Memorial Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in West Bridgewater?
1.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near West Bridgewater?
44,143 acres of parks and open public land lie inside West Bridgewater or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,166 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does West Bridgewater have?
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #121 of 283 in Massachusetts. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from West Bridgewater neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →